Michael Brenes and Van Jackson
As it did in 2016, Donald Trump’s presidency has prompted commentators in and outside Washington to reflect on the direction of U.S. foreign policy. Questions abound over how Trump will deal with China and Russia, as well as India and emerging powers in the global South. U.S. foreign policy is headed into a period of uncertainty, even if Trump’s first term provides a stark reference point for how he might manage the United States’ role in the world in the coming years.
Trump’s return to the White House cements his place in history as a transformational figure. Presidents Franklin Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan shaped distinct “ages” of U.S. history—they redefined the role of government in Americans’ lives and remade U.S. foreign policy in enduring ways. Roosevelt’s presidency, which engendered a multilateral order led by the United States, heralded the dawn of “the American Century.” Reagan sought to maximize U.S. military and economic power; his was a time of “peace through strength.” Post–Cold War administrations have oscillated between these two visions, often taking on elements of both. Trump inherits the remnants of these ages, but he also represents a new one: the age of nationalism.
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